LOS ANGELES, California – The United Nations World Food Programme and Abel “The Weeknd” Tesfaye, a multi-platinum certified global star and a U.N. World Food Programme Goodwill Ambassador, announced today that $5 million has been pledged and raised since the launch of their XO Humanitarian Fund in March 2022 to help millions of people around the world who are hungry. During a private ceremony at his After Hours Til Dawn Stadium Tour concert in Los Angeles, The Weeknd gave a check to World Food Program USA.
Each ticket purchased for The Weeknd’s North American Stadium Tour, as well as sales of an exclusive XO Humanitarian Fund/U.N. World Food Programme tour t-shirt, contributed $1 to the Fund. Corporate sponsors, tour stops, and fans of The Weeknd all contributed as well. The Board of Directors of World Food Program USA and American contributors each gave $1 million.
The largest cryptocurrency exchange in the world and the official sponsor of the After Hours Til Dawn Stadium Tour, Binance, committed US$2 million to the Fund.
A first tranche of US$2 million of the funds raised will support emergency food assistance and nutritional support for malnourished children and pregnant or nursing mothers in northern Ethiopia, benefiting more than 75,000 people in the country’s most food-insecure areas. The remaining funds will support a variety of U.N. World Food Programme activities.
“We are deeply appreciative and humbled by The Weeknd’s steadfast support, as well as that of his loyal fans and partners,” said Barron Segar, World Food Program USA president and CEO. “Abel is an inspiration to us all, and through his efforts, thousands of families will have food security and hope for a better future.”
“On stage and off stage, The Weeknd is bringing hope and happiness to millions of people across the globe,” said David Beasley, WFP executive director. “His inspirational XO Humanitarian Fund is a new dawn in the struggle to end global hunger at a time when we are seeing funding shrink and the threat of famine grow. As WFP’s Global Goodwill Ambassador, he is opening hearts and minds to our life-saving cause and offering millions the chance of a brighter tomorrow.”
A record 349 million people in 79 countries currently experience severe food insecurity, with 49 million of them living in 49 countries on the verge of famine. The terrible effects of international conflicts, climatic shocks, rising expenses, and the COVID-19 pandemic on disadvantaged communities around the world have driven this.
In order to stop millions from going hungry, the U.N. World Food Programme, which hopes to reach 160 million people this year, focuses on delivering emergency food, cash assistance, and nutrition initiatives. In order to prevent the crisis from getting worse, the organization is also striving to stabilize local markets, supply chains, and national food systems.
